MOORPARK PRIMARY SCHOOL CLOSURE PROPOSALS

WHY CLOSE A SCHOOL WITHOUT COUNTING THE PUPILS COMING IN WITH GROWING HOUSING DEVELOPMENTS?

Why is Moorpark School the only closure the only option? I believe the Council should plan for a new joint campus as Renfrew town is planned to expand by almost a third over next 10 years.

Wendy Alexander said

“Why will SNP/Lib Councillors not ask for £10m for Renfrewshire schools – just 1.5% of £800m on offer from the Scottish Government to let Kirklandneuk be refurbished as planned and both St James and Moorpark, each have a new school on a new joint campus.  
The council has already set aside £16m for Renfrew primaries. Their plan for redeveloping Kirklandneuk and a new St James is costed at £20m. Hence their favoured option asks for just £5m (less than 1% on cash on offer from the Scottish Government) for Kirklandneuk be refurbished and St James rebuilt.

Yet Moorpark parents favoured option of a joint campus requires just £10 million from the Scottish Government (£16m + £10m).

Astonishingly the council’s consultation paper on closure – provided below fails to mention future pupil numbers. It is only at the closure meetings that officials reveal that their plans would mean Kirklandneuk at 475 pupils (51 pupils over current capacity), St James at 500, and no figures given for Newmains or Arkleston for forecast pupils numbers. Already the numbers in p1 classes in Renfrew this year is 19% bigger than the numbers in p3 in Renfrew.”

In response to a letter from Wendy education officials admitted the Council has agreed to the building of 2789 new homes in Renfrew – less than 500 of these new homes are yet occupied. So with Renfrew planned to grow by almost a third why are we cutting the non denominational schools from 4 to 3? 

Wendy Alexander says

“The Council should put the expected size of Renfrew primaries in the consultation document and let councillors and parents choose their favoured option. We need to get the facts on future numbers on the table. To be cutting the non denominational primaries from 4 to 3 when the town is growing so fast is storing up problems in the future.”